Hyundai revealed the Kona facelift a couple of months back and here we have the Kona EV facelift. The Kona EV facelift looks identical to its petrol-powered counterparts but an offset charging port is clearly visible at the front. Hyundai has kept the heart same as before but the looks have changed drastically, in a good way though!
Observing the changes on the outside first, the front grille is not present, there is also no design mimicking the presence of one. What we get on the front is an offset charging port where you are supposed to plug the charger. The Kona EV was the car to come with split headlights setup and that has been carried over here too. The LED DRLs sit on top whereas the jewel-like LED headlights sit lower on the bumper. The side profile of the facelifted model is muted owing to the lack of body cladding but the new alloy wheels look much better than before. The changes on the rear are subtler and the bulk has been reduced too.
Coming to the inside of the Hyundai Kona EV facelift, the design is familiar and seems to be inspired from the recently-unveiled Tucson. The floating-type centre-console accommodates the AC and ride-by-wire controls whereas a 10.25-inch touchscreen sits atop the dash. The 10.25-inch touchscreen which comes with a host of tech is optional but the 10.25-inch driver's display is standard across the board. The digital screen is carried over from the new 2021 Elantra and Tucson whereas the 10.25-inch touchscreen gets Bluelink and other useful features.
Coming to the powertrains, Hyundai hasn't changed anything here. Gloabally, the Kona EV comes with two battery pack options - 39.2kWh and 64kWh. While the bigger battery pack with 201bhp on tap is not available in India, we keep our focus on the other one. The other pack is the 39.2kWh which is mated to an electric motor producing 136hp and 395Nm of peak torque. It touches 0-100 km/h mark in just 9.9 seconds and the WLTP-vertified range is 305 km.
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The India launch of the Kona EV Facelift is expected to take place sometime next year. Hyundai was the first mover in the Indian market to offer the all-electric crossover and that gave the birth to the MG ZS EV and Tata Nexon EV. Hyundai has also planned more EVs for the Indian market which will be shared at a later date.
